Man that took long. Here is a list of excuses for not updating on time:
I'm tired. (Hell, everyone's tired.)
I'm busy. (Actually, I'm lazy and I procrastinate.)
I am suffering severe writer's block. (...now that's an excuse)
Haha. Have fun reading the last chapter.
"Mister! Mister!"
A scrawny kid in a tattered, oversized shirt called to a man who huddled in the shadowy corner of a building. He kneeled next to him and tugged at his robe.
"Hey, hey, mister, do you want to see magic?"
"There's no such a thing as magic." The man's voice was emotionless, even dead, as if someone had wrung the emotion out of him and left him out to dry. This was slightly startling to the boy, but he cleared his throat and smiled.
"Of course there's magic. If there was no such thing as magic, then how could the sky be blue or an orange be orange?" The boy jumped up and spread out his arms like an eagle preparing for flight. "There is magic EVERYWHERE!!" The passerby around the two glanced at them and scuttled off, hurrying their children along. The corners of the man's mouth twitched slightly. The boy grinned with satisfaction.
"Come with me, sir. I'll show you what magic is like." The boy slipped his hand into the man's and led him through the stream of villagers. The man noticed that the boy's hands were calloused, probably from toiling in the stretch of endless field that rippled on either side of him.
The boy finally stopped at a modest shop with a man hosing a garden of blooming flowers. He straightened his stooped back and waved. "Ryuu, you've found a customer?"
"A customer?" An angry look twisted the man's face. "You want money, is that it? You and your "magic!" Ha! What a piece of work!" The man roughly shoved the boy away.
"But sir…I was…I was just…I was going to give you this." Eyes flooding with tears, the boy raised a quivering hand, that grasped a fragile, pale narcissus.
The man's expression transitioned into one of humiliation, and he stumbled back. "Sorry," he muttered and, loosening his grip, helped the boy up.
"It's okay." The boy unleashed a wide, toothless grin. "Everyone has their grumpy days, don't they?"
The man soon found out that the boy only looked at the positive side of things. Whether it be garbage, swindlers, or half-mangled cats, everything was perfectly beautiful in his mind's eye. Simple pleasures were enough for the boy. However, his naïveté was not out of stupidity. He was philosophical in his own childlike way, spurting perceptive, spontaneous remarks at random. His future was bright, the man concluded.
And the boy could talk.
And talk.
Now, the man was not all too fond of extensive, pointless conversations, but he actually quite liked it. Everything in his mind was always sorted and labeled "Necessary" or "Unnecessary," then packaged and ready to be grouped once more in the "Hate" or "Hate Even More" categories.
The boy also had a countless amount of questions. "Sir?" The boy once asked. "Why did you come to this village?"
"Well," the man responded, "I was wandering around. I guess you could say that I was running."
"Running away from what?" the boy wondered aloud.
"Everything. Fate, maybe." The man's haggard face tilted up into the sky.
"Mister, why are you looking up?"
"Alright, enough with the 'sir' and 'mister'. It's making me uncomfortable."
The boy laughed. "Yes, si- I mean, yes…what's your name?"
The man paused before responding. "My name is Naruto."
The boy didn't respond. He looked deep into the man's eyes, as if he was probing every inch of his mind. Then he turned away.
"No it isn't. You aren't 'Naruto'."
"How did you figure it out?" The man sounded amazed.
"You don't look like a "Naruto". And besides, Naruto is a silly name! Who would be named that?"
The man snorted. He clamped his mouth shut, but his shoulders were shaking up and down and a tiny snicker escaped his lips. The boy began to giggle as his face flushed a purplish-red. The two soon filled the street with unruly laughter that disappeared in the whispering fields surrounding them.
As they quieted down, the boy asked, "Do you want to see magic?" He hopped up and down eagerly. "I'll prove that there's magic!"
"I doubt that, but all right."
"Ok." The boy held the narcissus to the man's nose. The fragrance was pungent and aromatic, almost sorrowful. He inhaled deeply and sighed.
"Doesn't it smell nice?" The boy took in the scent himself and smiled longingly. "Now come with me!"
The boy pulled him across the field of swaying grass. At first, the man dragged his feet, futilely ordering the boy to stop. The boy only flashed a defiant grin and ran on.
"Listen!" he shouted above the whistling wind. "Listen to what the earth is telling you!"
The man sighed, defeated, and decided to play along. He closed his eyes and opened his ears.
What he heard was startling.
It was a scream, a deadly shriek from the underworld itself. A dissonance of shrill voices that reached out from Hell to ensnare him in the whirling wind.
The man cried out to the earth. "Forgive me. Forgive me." His voice was drowned out by the vocal chaos and clamor.
As the wind died down, so did the voices. A steady breeze filled the fields with song. The earth was no longer angry.
With the now-compliant man, the two dashed towards the setting sun, hoping to grasp that suspended ball of radiant fire before its flailing arms sank below the earth.
The man never wanted to stop. He tossed his head back and laughed out. The potency of the sweet narcissus had melted the last bit of frost in his heart. Hurtling across the field with unlimited energy, he lifted the boy onto his shoulders and ran, ran, ran.
"…I'm debating between pink and blue, though I think Ino would – hey, Sasuke, are you listening?" Shikamaru peered behind a rack of potted plants.
"Oh…sorry." Sasuke shook his head slightly. "I was just daydreaming a little."
"But do you think Ino would get mad at me if I were to give her flowers from someone else's shop?" Shikamaru asked anxiously. "Valentine's Day is coming up, I don't know what to do, I'm scared out of my wits, hell, I gotta pee…"
"It's February?" Sasuke exclaimed incredulously. "Really?"
"Yeah…" Shikamaru answered hesitantly.
Sasuke pressed his fingers to his temples, muttering swears under his breath.
"What? What's wrong?" Shikamaru looked at him curiously.
"…It's nothing. Forget about it. Oh, and I would highly recommend pink. You want her to feel feminine, don't you?" Sasuke nudged him lightheartedly. "Alright, 2,000 yen for a bouquet."
"Tch." Shikamaru's eyebrows twitched slightly. "What a pain." He took out his wallet and handed him the money (a little unwillingly).
"Have fun!" Sasuke waved cheerily.
As soon as Shikamaru left, another customer walked into Sasuke's flower shop.
"U-u-umm…h-hi, Sas-sasuke-kun…"
"Hello, Hinata-chan. Could you please wait one minute? I'll be back."
Before he waited for a stuttering reply, he went into the back of his store and dialed a number on his phone.
"Hey, old man! It's me, Sasuke. I was wondering if Ryuu could come over this weekend, you know-"
Sasuke's face suddenly became pallid. "H-he did. I didn't know…th-that's so sudden."
Sasuke slid onto the floor and pressed the receiver close to his sweating face. "H-how did he die?"
There was a click, and then a long buzz. "Hello?" Sasuke whispered. Then he yelled. "Hello?!"
"S-Sasuke-kun?" Hinata's worried voice floated into the backroom.
"Oh, sorry, Hinata-chan!" Sasuke tried to brighten up. "What would you like?"
"U-umm…o-oran-orange f-flowers…"
"Sorry, Hinata-chan. Naruto isn't ready for another lover yet." Sasuke smiled apologetically. "Not yet."
"Oh. A-alright." A pink flush crept up to Tenten's cheeks, and she bolted out the door.
Sasuke was silent for a moment. He stared at the patterns on the marble countertop - swirling, twisting, entangling the colors of the earth.
And, as he closed his eyes, his odyssey was far from this little shop. In his mind, he trekked across infinite rolling waves of green splendor.
In his mind, he ran across that sunlit field with the boy, his boy.
Sometimes, you can will yourself to see something else than what's before your eyes. Like the amount of money you don't save on car insurance or your daughter's cell phone bill. Or maybe when you skinned a knee riding a bike without protective gear and winced at the sight of blood pooling in the wound.
Right now, Sasuke willed himself to not see the bullet holes in the glass windows and the upturned flower carts. He willed himself not to see the rusty blood stains splashed against the side of the flower shop.
"It happened only a few days ago." Ryuu's father was speaking. Sasuke tried to block that out, too, but it didn't work. "Ry-Ryuu never told me he was being bullied. He would never tell me any of his problems, the dear boy." The man choked back a sob.
A thought crossed Sasuke's mind, and he clenched his teeth. "It wasn't his fault. Don't blame him," Sasuke said quietly.
"Oh, it wasn't his fault, it wasn't his fault. Who can I blame? Those who bullied him have been executed, I cannot blame then any longer. Oh, it's horrible, horrible!!"
"It's your fault."
"W-what?" Shock was clearly written across the man's tear-stained face.
"IT'S YOUR FAULT!! YOU DIDN'T ASK HIM WHAT WAS GOING ON!! YOU ASSUMED EVERYTHING WAS FINE!!DIDN'T YOU SEE ANYTHING BEHIND HIS SMILE?!? DIDN'T YOU THINK HE MIGHT HAVE BEEN CRYING ON THE INSIDE?!?"
An explosion of raw emotion was released in the words he could never bear to utter. The boy is dead, the boy is dead…
Sasuke could not hear himself screaming any longer.
And then, in a single snap of the fingers, you could say that everything was gone. All the resentment, hatred, anger, sadness…and happiness.
Sasuke sat on the dirt road, his eyes blank and empty. What more could he be than a drained glass? Half-full-or-half-empty was out of question. His life was surely spiraling downwards.
So
he
sank
to
the
depths
of
the
ocean
and
his
odyssey
was over.
Naruto visited the slide more than ever. Sometimes he would stare into space. Once Sakura caught him moodily picking at a clump of clovers. Either way, one thing was for certain.
Something was wrong.
"Naruto-kun?"
Naruto didn't turn around. "Hi, Sakura." He fixed his eyes on that one cloud that curiously resembled a bowl of ramen.
"Naruto, do you want to come home with me? I want to hear you play piano."
"Your parents don't like me."
"They aren't home today. C'mon, Naruto. Just for a little bit."
Naruto sighed. "Alright." He slid down and glanced at her grocery bags. "You need me to carry those for you?"
"I'm fine. I don't need someone to do everything for me all the time. Guess what? I'm starting to get more involved." Sakura punched the air with her fists. "I'm buying more groceries by myself, but it's kind of hard to differentiate fresh vegetables and meat from the bad ones. I'm also cooking too! I actually got Sasuke to taste my food, but…he looked a little green afterwards."
"Mmm-hmm," Naruto said absentmindedly.
"Hey! Are you listening?" Sakura demanded.
"Sorry. Umm...you look nice today," he observed.
Sakura blushed. "D-do you only have room for compliments? Will you listen to me without trying to be a suck-up?"
Naruto smiled a little. "You are becoming stronger."
Sakura laughed nervously. The rest of the walk home was most uncomfortably silent.
"So…Naruto, I heard that you were dating Tenten," Sakura said casually, placing two cans of tuna in her pantry.
"What?" His head shot in her direction, but then he relaxed. "Oh…not anymore. She basically said, 'Out of the way, Naruto, and make room for my new boyfriend!' Haha. What a load of crap."
Sakura looked half-relieved. "Well, I'm glad she's gone then."
Naruto grunted. "Where is your piano?" he asked.
Sakura grinned. "Follow me," she said, and led him over to a room bathed entirely in buttery sunlight. An immense grand piano reflected the abundant light on its glossy black surface. Naruto whistled.
"Wow." He sat on the piano bench and looked at the piece in front of him. The notes printed on the paper looked remarkably familiar.
"Valse." Naruto's voice faltered. "By Chopin."
"I heard you play it," Sakura said gently. "I'd like to hear it again. You don't mind, do you?"
"No. I'm fine." Naruto set his trembling fingers on the keys and began to play Tenten's favorite song. As he proceeded further into the piece, his fingers slipped and intertwined with each other clumsily. Mistake after mistake after mistake…
Naruto finally stopped and banged the piano with his fists, sounding a discord of jumbled notes.
"T-tenten…" A sudden sharp intake of breath followed.
Sakura gently placed her hand on Naruto's shuddering back. "Look at me, Naruto."
He turned his head away in shame. The haunting melody rung in his ears as Sakura's hands reached out slowly, slowly, towards Naruto's tear-stained face…
…and she kissed him.
"Hello, Tenten." Naruto smiled good-naturedly. "Can I come in?"
Tenten's face drained of color. "Naruto?"
"Hi. I just wanted to see…how things were going."
"Oh. Everything's fine. Well, I'm a bit busy now, so…" Tenten's voice trailed off and she began to close her door.
"Wait!" Naruto held the door firmly in place. "I just wanted to talk to you about something."
"Tenten, is something wrong?" An indistinct voice came from inside the house. Neji's watchful eyes peered at Naruto from inside. "Oh. It's you." Neji walked out and slipped his hands around Tenten's waist. "Would you like to come in? I wanna have a word with you."
Naruto felt his heart drop as Neji brushed his lips against Tenten's. "Umm…right," he mumbled.
Neji whispered in Tenten's ear, and Tenten shook her head vigorously. Neji's eyes flashed with anger. Naruto noticed that his hands curled around Tenten's slender wrists and refused to unclench until Tenten nodded her head quickly and bounded off.
"This way, Naruto," Neji motioned to the kitchen. He poured two steaming cups of green tea. Naruto paid no heed to this friendly gesture and stared at Neji.
"Why don't you drink your tea?" Neji folded his arms and nudged the cup towards him.
"I'd rather not," Naruto said icily.
"Why not? You think I'd poison you?" Neji chuckled. "There's no room for betrayal here. Let's talk this out. Tenten is mine. And you have…no one."
"I do," corrected Naruto. "Haruno Sakura."
"Ahh," Neji nodded approvingly. "That settles it. Now you have no right to come to Tenten's house any longer."
"I-I can't do what?" Naruto blubbered.
"That's right." Neji smiled widely, his pearl-white teeth gleaming ominously. "Now how could I trust a man like you to even come close to her?"
"I think that you have no right to control what Tenten does or where she goes." Naruto wrapped his fists around the teacup. Dumping the scorching liquid over his head would be a very good idea. A very good idea indeed.
"Naruto, that's enough." Tenten stood quietly at the doorway. "Neji, please leave."
Neji shot an I-don't-trust-you look at her and stalked into the front yard, slamming the door melodramatically behind him.
Tenten sighed heavily. "Now, Naruto, what did you want to talk about?"
"Oh, yeah. Sakura and I are hosting a party at her house…you know, for Valentine's Day. Couples only. So I was wondering if you and Neji wanted to come…but…"
"Oh, no! We would really love to come!" Tenten interrupted hastily.
"You know, you can't let him control you like this," Naruto said softly. "It's not right."
"It was my decision," Tenten replied. She plastered a smile on her face. "We'll go to the party."
Naruto rung the doorbell. No one answered. He looked up at the simple slab of wood with "Uchiha Estate" painted on it in fine calligraphy. He had come to the right place; Sasuke was always home from his shop after six o' clock.
"Damn, he's going to kill me for this," Naruto mumbled to himself and stepped inside. Paint cans were littered on the ground. His eyes widened. How long ago did we come here to paint? Two months ago?
"Sasuke?" he called anxiously. He quickened his pace and swept past the labyrinth of dark rooms. "Sasuke?!"
His heart palpating wildly, Naruto paused at the last room down a narrow corridor. Only had he noticed another presence when a shadow skittered across the dimly-lit room.
Sasuke sat in the middle of the room, shirtless and barely alive.
"Sasuke?" Naruto said timidly. He edged up to him and stared at his shut eyelids.
"What?" Sasuke finally opened his eyes.
"W-we have to get you out of here…" Naruto looked at his hollow cheeks and protruding ribs in horror.
Naruto begged and pleaded, but Sasuke would only shake his head and reply, nope, nope, I'm not leaving, he's my boy…
"You're mad, Sasuke." He seized his wrist and tried to haul him out the door but only hesitated when Sasuke winced in pain.
"I'm staying, I can't leave. Ryuu needs me…" Sasuke protested weakly.
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"Ryuu." Sasuke pointed to a lump in front of him that Naruto hadn't noticed before.
As Naruto peered closer at the lump, his stomach lurched. He turned away quickly.
"W-what's the meaning of this, Sasuke?" Naruto was ready to heave. "What are you doing with a dead body?"
"He's my boy. He was buried in a town that offered him nothing. I dug him out. He belongs with me. No one can take him from me now. No one can take away my last brother." Sasuke placed his bony arms protectively around the crumpled figure.
"Your brother? But your last brother is-" A sudden look of realization spread across his face. "Who is this?"
"Ryuu. My Ryuu."
Naruto gasped silently. This was Ryuu, the boy that Sasuke would never shut up about, the boy that had "saved" him in inexplicable ways, the boy who he had fondly called "his brother"…
"W-what happened to him?"
"Murdered. Shot by two older kids." Sasuke said this emotionlessly. "Suffered five of 'em. Ryuu was always a strong boy, the s-s-strongest to withstand so many b-bullets…" Sasuke's face crumpled up.
He really did have one last family member, Naruto thought sorrowfully as Sasuke suppressed a sob, clutching at his hair with what was left of his depleted strength. He had one and then fate decided to ruin it for him.
"Sasuke?" Naruto kneeled down next to him and cocked his head slightly. "You didn't lose your last brother. Didn't I promise to be your last family member? Someone who'd keep you from doing stupid stuff and letting you get hurt. Guess I failed miserably at that job." He scoffed at himself. "What a baka, eh?"
Sasuke was not smiling, nor was he weeping.
"Look." Naruto pointed to the expanse of wall above him. Paint blotches still remained after their night of ridiculous amusement, which now seemed far, far away. "I suppose you've never seen this, but I painted something on this enormous wall." he grunted. He helped Sasuke up and pointed to what appeared to be an orange blemish on the splattered wall. "Thought it was something special," he grunted.
Sasuke strained his eyes to discern the mark in the faint light. The "mark" was a simple drawing of two stick figures. The two were sitting on a single chair (at least Sasuke assumed it was a chair). Sloppy writing over the picture read "WE'RE INSEPARABLE" and was underlined multiple times.
Sasuke almost smiled. "You made me look fat," he observed.
"Well, I'm not Picasso. My job isn't to indulge you." Naruto said indignantly.
This time Sasuke doubled over with laughter. "Alright, Picasso. Let's go paint a picture somewhere else." He headed for the door. "Man, I'm hungry. I haven't eaten for weeks. Wanna grab a bite at Ichiraku's?"
"Really?" A grin lit up Naruto's face and he jumped up automatically. But then his enthusiasm faded. "What about…you know…"
"We'll find a proper burial soon." Sasuke tenderly stroked the boy's hair. "I already bathed and clothed him. You remember these clothes? I wore them when we were little 12-year olds, thinking we were big and bad and ready to take on the world. Now, he'll have a chance to fend for himself in the afterlife or whatever's waiting for him. He's smart, I'm sure he'll be fine."
And somewhere up there, in that "wherever" place hid from mortal eyes, Ryuu was watching, silently, carefully.
And somewhere up there, he summoned a wide, toothless grin.
The sheeting rain slaked the earth's thirst after twenty consecutive days of blistering sunshine. The outpour was greeted by many eager faces pressed against their windows, waiting for the sun to emerge and cast its dominant light over the world that would glitter, glitter like one thousand shards of glass.
Today, Naruto decided that he would dissipate with the rain.
It was so unimaginably simple. As soon as Neko-chan curled into her bed, Naruto would walk all the way to his slide. He would lay there without uttering a word. And as soon as the last drop of rain fell to the ground, Naruto would be no longer.
No, Naruto was not at the end of his rope. Everything was on his mind lately…especially Tenten. The millions of thoughts that pounded against his head were enough to lead him down the dark, bottomless hole of depression. Why did you leave me? You said you loved me, what a lie…stupid, stupid lovestruck Tenten…
But he stopped fuming when a flicker of movement in the playground caught him by surprise. An arm dangled lifelessly from the slide. He knew that arm.
"Tenten?" his voice echoed panic and alarm as he rushed to her side.
Tenten's eyes were shut tight, and a small tinkle of music floated from Tenten's headphones. For a second he feared the worst. But as he pressed his hands against Tenten's heart, the worried crease around his eyes slackened, and he breathed a sigh of relief. "Tenten-chan…c'mon, wake up…" After that came a brief moment of silence.
A muscle in Tenten's jaw twitched. "I was waiting for you to kiss me," she finally said.
Naruto rolled his eyes. "I'm not your boyfriend anymore, okay? Now get up before you catch a cold."
"You mean 'get up so I can go and make myself sick,'" she retorted. "I know you. You wouldn't come here unless you have a problem and want to stay overnight. And you know what? I happen to like it here, thank you very much."
Naruto shrugged, as if to say, it's your call. He slipped off his jacket – the one that Sakura bought for him for the Valentine's Day party – and deposited it on Tenten. Tenten chucked it away. Naruto went over to pick the jacket up and wrapped her around it. Tenten shook it off again.
Naruto shook his head reprovingly. "If you're going to act like a little kid, I'll be the parent. I demand you to get your butt off the slide and onto your bed."
Tenten giggled a little. "Do you remember when I did this to you? That was funny." She stroked his face lovingly.
"Don't touch me!" Naruto instinctively slapped her arms away and let out a low growl. His obvious lust for Tenten was unmistakable in his eyes. Tenten whimpered slightly as this dangerous creature came within an inch of her face, her nose, her tantalizing lips. Then his passion faded. "What do you want from me?" he sighed.
"I'm sorry about Neji." She slid down to join him. "You know when you love someone for so long, and suddenly they accept your feelings? It was like you wanted to push everything away and make room for that person."
Naruto laughed sourly. "Well, that's what you did to me."
Tenten cringed. "Sorry." She averted her eyes. "But I realized that he wasn't as kind or as cheerful…as someone else. He wouldn't buy me a shirt with blue lace if he was nearly in debt or run to my house after his afternoon job at Ichiban just to say that he loved me."
"Wait – Tenten, please…" said Naruto bleakly as Tenten began to cry. He gathered her up and rocked her back and forth, cooing softly to her as if she were a baby. Except Tenten was clutching Naruto's neck for dear life and Naruto was swaying slightly under her weight.
Somewhere under those heavy, pitiful sobs, Tenten began to laugh.
"D-did you d-d-ditch Sakura's Valentine's Day p-party?" she hiccupped.
"Sort of," Naruto admitted. He let her feet touch the floor and slipped his hands around her waist. "C'mon, let's have a party of our own." Naruto flashed a silly grin at her and bowed. "Tenten, could I have the honor-"
"Oh, do shut up." Tenten rested her arms on his broad shoulders and suppressed a giggle.
With Tenten's hair plastered to her face and rain soaking through her shirt, Naruto came to the conclusion that he never saw anything more beautiful.
Behind them, a titter rose up from the bushes. Naruto glanced at the shrubs quickly, turned back to face Tenten, and then did a double take.
"Sakura?!" Naruto stared at his girlfriend's partly concealed face in horror.
Wait. Was Sakura laughing?
At this particular moment, a crowd of people swarmed over. It took a while for Naruto to realize they were cheering – every single one of them. Shikamaru, Ino, Choji, Hinata, Kiba, Shino, Rock Lee, the list went on and on…
Hinata shyly walked over to the stunned pair and said, "This is for you two." She opened up her clasped hands and there, cradled in her palms, was an orange flower.
Naruto hugged her tightly. "Thank you, Hinata."
Hinata nodded and bounced back into the arms of Inuzuka Kiba.
"Wait a second. Y-you two…" Naruto pointed at the couple feebly. "Oh my gawd." He paused only when Tenten trodded on his feet (somewhat violently).
"We were looking for you," Sakura piped up. "When you didn't come, everyone pitched in to help find you."
"Really?" said Naruto ruefully. "Man, sorry about that."
"You ruined the surprise, though!" one voice called from the middle of the crowd. "We were going to get you and Tenten back together, but it looks like our job is done."
More laughter.
"Even Neji? He wanted this too?"
Back in Sakura's house, hidden under a heap of pillows, lay an infuriated Neji, cursing himself and that goddamn Naruto, gonna kick the living shit out of him…
Naruto grimaced. Neji was definitely going to get him for this.
Someone in the crowd whooped. "Aww, forget about Neji!" This comment was met with a murmur of agreement. Shikamaru wrapped his arms around Ino's waist and began to dance. Everyone smirked and followed suit.
As the rain streaked down innumerable gowns and suits, Sasuke watched smugly from the sidelines. Then he caught a glimpse of Sakura, who chattered excitedly in the heart of the crowd.
My turn. He tapped Sakura on the shoulder, a rose concealed behind his back. "Wanna dance?"